CHAPTER 1
THE EVOLUTION OF RFID
1.1 INTRODUCTION
Radio-frequency identification (RFID) is a relatively new technology. Some believe that its concept might have originated in military plane identification during World War II and that it really started to be intensively developed for tracking and access applications during the 1980s. These wireless systems allow for noncontact and non-line-of-sight reading of data from electronic labels by the means of electromagnetic signals, and consequently they are attractive for numerous tracking and tagging scenarios. For example, they are effective in hostile environments such as manufacture halls, where bar code labels could not survive. Furthermore, RFID tags can be read in challenging circumstances when there is no physical contact or direct line of sight. RFID has established itself in a wide range of markets, including livestock identification and automated vehicle identification systems, because of its ability to track moving objects. RFID technology is becoming a primary player in automated data collection, identification, and analysis systems worldwide.
RFID, its application, its standardization, and its innovation are constantly changing. It is a new and complex technology that is not well known and well understood by the general public, or even by many practitioners. Many areas of RFID operation need development to achieve a longer reading range, ...
